GameSpot has published a tip-off that Apple is aggressively recruiting games engineers for its iTunes division.

The iPod has a few basic built-in games and talented coders have managed to make PC relics like Doom operate on the device, but until now, Apple has shown little interest in competing with the likes of PlayStation Portable, Nokia N-Gage and Nintendo DS for a slice of the handheld gaming market.

Games support for the Macintosh format is also very slim, mostly confined to ports of a select few successful Windows games.

Apple has displayed no ambition in the games market since their ill-fated Bandai collaboration called Pippin, a multimedia game machine using Macintosh technology released in 1996.

With the ever-growing ubiquity of iPod players, adding simple mobile-phone style games to the iTunes selection of music and video downloads would seem a smart move, but Apple is unlikely to mess with its acclaimed minimalist design by adding gaming buttons and pads to the popular device.

The all formats chart for the week ending May 21 from GfK shows The Big Quiz still occupying the top two slots.

Buzz's popularity will no doubt encourage Sony to get forthcoming sports and film versions of the interactive quiz show released as soon as possible.

Kids versions, including the Mario Party-style Buzz: Jungle Party, are also coming for Christmas to take advantage of the appealingly simple buzzer controllers.

World Cup fever is starting to grip the nation, with FIFA World Cup 2006 moving up to third position, and even the old FIFA 2006 edition re-entering the charts.

Lara Croft has dropped out of the Top 10, while The Sims continue to dominate the PC charts.

PlayStation 2 titles continue to hold a monopoly on the top positions, occupying the top six best sellers of the week. It is a situation almost certainly set to continue, with Sony dropping the console's price to a wallet-friendly $199 tomorrow.

Epic role playing adventure Oblivion continues to be the most popular game for Xbox 360, but the low-priced Table Tennis from Rockstar is expected to be a strong challenger.

On Nintendo DS charts, the Nintendogs phenomenon shows no signs of abating, with three different versions of puppy simulator representing the three top selling games of the week. On PSP, the excellent platformer Daxter continues to hold top spot.

Snatching a rare chance to escape the hubbub of the Electronic Entertainment Expo, Screen Play sat down with Microsoft honcho Peter Moore to discuss the future of Xbox.

In this exclusive interview, Moore dismisses motion-sensor controllers, warns Sony about the PS3 price, talks about widening the audience for Xbox with online functionality and EyeToy-style games, discusses in-game advertising and boasts of the increasing cultural acceptance of videogames.

Microsoft's Corporate Vice President, Interactive Entertainment Business, Entertainment and Devices Division, Moore is responsible for leading both the Xbox and Games for Windows divisions.

You've announced that you're on track for sales of 10 million 360s...

We've got a 10 million head start before the other guys get into the market.

Are you confident that you'll quickly get to Xbox's 20 million?

It becomes a snowball rolling down a hill, it feeds upon itself. We're feeling confident.

But how do you get beyond that? How do you widen the audience for Xbox?

I've showed things like Arcade and Viva Pinata and perhaps more importantly, Live Anywhere. To have a very non-intimidating experience regardless of whether you're on your Xbox 360, your Vista PC or your mobile phone, I think that is really another way to drive console adoption. People see the core facility in the Xbox 360 and this idea of elevating the platform experience to various devices is exciting. Obviously the fact that Bill decided to come here and present it himself shows that it is a big idea and we're very excited about it.

How important do you think Viva Pinata is for attracting mainstream consumers to 360?

Viva Pinata is something I saw over two years ago in its infancy when the guys at Rare were first working on it. It was the result of thinking about how do we make an Xbox Live title that can bring other folks in and playing online gaming, which is still pretty hardcore. We're utilising great characters, there's over 60 pinatas. It's kinda like Tamagotchi, Neopets, Animal Crossing thrown all together, then add Xbox Live for something special. Another important thing is building a cartoon series.

Motion sensor controllers could be gaming's next big thing. Have you got any interest in bringing such a controller to Xbox?

We did what Sony's reported to be doing six years ago with the Freestyle. Been there, done that. Consumers said it was interesting, but there was a collective yawn from the gaming community. Never knock anyone for trying. Nintendo has obviously gone with this idea of waving things in the air and I'm sure it's going to be interesting, but whether it's going to be sustainable over 1000 different games, I don't know. I think the idea of doing innovative things is great, but whether they actually turn into incredibly powerful, mass-market devices is yet to be seen.

I haven't picked up the Sony controller yet but I do believe they've taken force feedback out of that. I cannot believe they would do that. I love force feedback when playing games. I would have settled that lawsuit with Immersion rather than take out force feedback which I believe is an integral part of the sensory element of gaming.

A lot of people are intimidated by the complexity of the modern joypad though?

I think we have a pretty intuitive joypad, and it's the content as well. We've got two button games on Xbox Live Arcade which are very intuitive. We also allow them to use things people are used to, like a keyboard and mouse. But the controller is more mass-market and familiar to a lot of people than it gets credit for. There are hundreds of millions of games consoles out there right now, all of them have got controllers alongside. It's not what it is, it's how you challenge people to use the device.

Sony has been successful with peripheral-based gaming, is that something Microsoft will get into in the future?

Yeah, I think that utilisation of the camera is going to be a big deal in the future. They (Sony) have done some innovative stuff with EyeToy and we intend to take it one step further. I think Poker is a huge deal, every teenage boy seems to be a Poker player all of a sudden. For you and I to see each other is integral to the gameplay of poker. But obviously we've got a lot more going on than that. Peripheral-based gaming is popular: Guitar Hero, SingStar, Buzz, have caught the imagination of gamers.

Do you think the market will tolerate Sony's price point?

Sony must think so. Let's be clear, any console always sells its initial run. It's not so much what you do at launch, or even the six months after launch, it's year two and year three when you've got to be on the price cascading, cost reduction curve, you've got to be hitting mass-market pricing levels. You've got to get your prices down and if you're competitor is ahead of you on the curve, watch out. Unless you can prove to the consumer that it's worth more than your competitor, you've got a challenge. But that's their problem to sort out, not mine.

How is Bungie coping with the huge weight of expectations upon Halo 3?

Bungie is Bungie. The doors are locked, nobody's coming out. They are used to just getting it done. Needless to say, they're busy.

Do you think there will be a need or a demand for a hard drive size increase?

Yeah, we're looking at that. The more stuff that we have on marketplace, the bigger the need is going to be. Down the line we may look at a larger capacity hard drive. We don't rule it out, that's why it's a removable hard drive. Memory prices are continuing to go down so we'll keep an eye on it and see what the consumer is prepared to pay. Of course with Media Centre Extender you can keep a lot of the high-def content on your PC and just stream it to your 360.

Some consumers got a shock with Xbox 360 software prices at launch, particularly from third party publishers, do you think the Massive acquisition can help drive down game prices?

Publishers are obviously free to set their own prices, but the acquisition of Massive is to keep things under control more than anything else. I think consumers realise that as games get better and we have high-definition games, there's a lot more labour, a lot more art. It's not cheap to build games anymore, but I think the experience offered warrants the price. If as a publisher I can get two or three dollars more from advertising that flows right to the bottom line and helps to at least neutralise the increasing cost of games development. We believe that relevant advertising in games is going to be really, really important. Let's face it, we've sucked all the energy out of network TV. People aren't watching TV any more, they're playing TV. All the guys are chasing us saying "You've got that 18 to 34 year old male, how do we get a piece of that?" Videogames are just starting to scratch the surface. Buying Massive and linking that to MSN is a very smart move.

How much research is being done to assess how much advertising gamers will tolerate?

A lot. It's got to be relevant. There's genres where it makes sense, and genres where it doesn't make sense. There's clever ways you can do in-game stuff that's dynamic, like the billboards changing when you drive down the street. There's stuff like product placement, which is very important as well, but it's got to be relevant. Gamers will tell you that if they're in PGR3, Coca-Cola is better than Fred's Cola on the billboard. If it actually enhances the reality of the game experience, they're all for it. This is how things have come full circle: when I was at Sega we did a game called Crazy Taxi and we actually paid Pizza Hut and KFC and Pepsi to use their products. Those are the same guys that are now saying, "Can we come in, and what's it going to cost us?" It's amazing how quickly it has changed.

How does the games industry improve its cultural recognition?

I have a 20 year old son who was basically born with a controller in his hands and knows no other life other than having an interactive entertainment experience with his TV, whether it was with his SNES and Genesis when he was a kid, then his Saturn and Dreamcast, and now of course with his Xbox and 360. These are still guys in their early 20s. You're going to have a complete generation that's grown up connected to the Internet and that feels gaming is completely natural. Those guys will then end up in political office, eventually you'll have a President of the United States who has been a hardcore gamer all his life. Things take time to weave themselves through culture. But when you've got the likes of Peter Jackson partnering with us on the Halo movie, I guarantee Steven Spielberg and Jeffrey Katzenberg are here at E3, Jerry Bruckheimer is here, the celebrities are here and they just want to get their hands on these games. It's just time. And you know, we're still controversial. Games like Grand Theft Auto are not exactly full family fare, but as long as we keep to our ratings, we'll be just fine. I feel here in the US that it's already certainly part of mainstream. Look at USA Today, there's a two-page spread on Halo. Not on the game, but the novel. I always use that as the barometer of basic American culture, and USA Today is running weekly references to the videogame business. You're now seeing videogame reviews right beside movies and music - they wouldn't dare not review games.

88 percent of Australians support the introduction of an R rating for games, yet one man stands in their way.

One man is preventing Australian adults from the freedom to choose their entertainment, undermining a crucial tenet of the classification code stating "adults should be able to read, hear and see what they want".

South Australian Attorney General Michael Atkinson opposes the introduction of an R18+ classification for games which would bring interactive entertainment in line with other media like films and publications.

Chris Hanlon, CEO of the Interactive Entertainment Association of Australia, the coalition of games distributors lobbying for the introduction of an R category, says Michael Atkinson is "very conservative, deeply religious, and sees protecting children from aggressive content in media as his mission".

In order to change the current regime by introducing a classification bill before parliament, all nine state and federal attorneys-general must agree unanimously to the proposal for an R18+ games rating.

Australia will not be flooded with new adult games if an R rating was introduced. Just four games were refused classification out of 768 submitted for rating to the Office of Film and Literature Classification in the 2004-2005 reporting period.

However, some games currently receiving MA15+ ratings might be labeled R if such a category existed. Titles like the Grand Theft Auto and Getaway series received R18+ ratings in the UK, but MA15+ in Australia.

An R rating would give the OFLC a lot more flexibility when dealing with borderline decisions like the recent controversial banning of Marc Ecko's Getting Up as well as sending a much stronger message to parents that not all games are suitable for children.

The OFLC's 2004-2005 annual report says many people are currently confused about the difference between M and MA15+ ratings and have a limited understanding of the computer game classification scheme.

Like many other Australians, I share Michael Atkinson's concerns that children are getting access to excessively violent content. But denying adults the right to choose what they play will not help protect children - only strict enforcement of the classification system and (more importantly) educating parents will achieve his goal.

Sadly, the current lack of an R category is actually perpetuating the myth that games are just for kids, and giving lazy parents an excuse for not monitoring what their children play.

Everyone wants to shield youngsters from inappropriate content, but the absence of an R classification is not achieving this - the reverse might even be true.

When the current classifications system was devised in 1994, there was little research into the effects of interactive games upon players, so censorship ministers directed the OFLC to uphold games to a higher standard than film or video.

The IEAA presented research from the GamePlay Australia study at the recent Standing Committee of Attorneys General meeting in Darwin, and have been invited to return to the next meeting later in the year.

Singapore is the only other Western country in the world not to have an R classification for games.

Rockstar's highly anticipated Table Tennis is released today for the wallet-friendly price of $69.

With many Xbox 360 titles costing nearly twice as much, Screen Play is interested in your thoughts on game pricing and how much pricetags influence your gaming choices.

Will the Table Tennis budget price make it more likely you'll buy it? Will you consider spending $129 on Guitar Hero when it's released in a few weeks?

Compared to other entertainment options like movie, sport or concert tickets, DVDs and thrill rides, games can provide excellent value, but resistance to triple-figure prices is inevitable.

Screen Play expects 360 game prices will fall as the console's installed base grows, but as we noted last month on Mash Up, it's annoying for early adopters to have to pay for up to $30 more for what often is simply a higher resolution version of the same game found on other formats.

Microsoft's Peter Moore seemed to have a lot of faith in consumers being prepared to pay a premium for next-gen games when Screen Play chatted to him at E3.

"I think consumers realise that as games get better and we have high-definition games, there's a lot more labour, a lot more art," he said. "It's not cheap to build games anymore, but I think the experience offered warrants the price."

Many gamers must be hoping that increased in-game advertising can help lower game prices, but Mr Moore believes it will probably just help to stem the rising tide.

"The acquisition of Massive is to keep things under control more than anything else. If as a publisher I can get two or three dollars more from advertising, that flows right to the bottom line and helps to at least neutralise the increasing cost of games development."

Screen Play got the rare chance to chat with award-winning WarioWare creator Goro Abe at the recent E3 expo to hear his thoughts on developing for the revolutionary console.

What's most exciting about working on the Nintendo Wii?
With this new hardware, many things become possible. It is very exciting thinking and imagining what we can do with this hardware. We can implement many new features in the game, so every day working with the Wii is very fun.

What are some of the different types of mini-games in Smooth Moves?
There are two steps before the action starts. First, the screen will show how to hold the controller, next it will say action as usual. For example, one of the micro-games is you hold the Wii remote like a broom in the palm of your hand and keep your balance. In another you put it on your head and actually perform a squat. Another is to have it on your waist and do a hula hoop action.

Did the ideas flow immediately once you were given the controller?

When I was first presented the new Wii remote I immediately thought that I could make a new very interesting and entertaining WarioWare game. I can't recall which specific micro-games I came up with at that point but some of the early ideas are reflected on the show floor. After those ideas we had the staff from the team in to share their own ideas and we discussed and polished them, evolving each game.

How many micro-games will be included in Smooth Moves?
We're expecting around 200, which is about the same as previous games in the series.

Did you design Smooth Moves primarily as a party game?
The game is performed by only one player with one controller, but it is creating a multiplayer environment by everybody watching the player and being entertained.

Are you experimenting with the Wii remote's speaker?
Yes, by combining with the vibration function we will try to utilise the speaker as much as we can to create a more realistic sense of feel to the users. It will be utilised for specific micro-games. For example, we have a game with a tennis racquet bouncing a ball, and the actual bouncing noise comes from the speaker.

The trend in the games industry is for increasingly sophisticated graphics and realism, yet WarioWare has been embraced because of its refreshing simplicity. Is it your personal philosophy that games should be short and sweet, putting entertainment above realism?
I do not want to limit other games to say they should not be sophisticated or anything like that, but concerning WarioWare, we wanted to present a wide variety of games in one package that are very short, easy to understand, and everyone can play. For WarioWare, short and sweet and easy to understand is how it should be.

Is it your hope that games like WarioWare can widen the audience for videogames, attracting new players?
Yes, I am trying to work hard to increase the gaming population and give new experiences to a broad audience.

Why do you think Nintendo has such a unique culture of innovation?
Nintendo is an entertainment company. Entertainment is not necessary for everyday life, so if customers get bored or tired of it, we can't stop them from going away. Nintendo's mission is to create new and innovative entertainment for everybody.

With the game nearing completion, what are you most pleased with?
I'm happy and proud when I see people enjoying playing WarioWare Smooth Moves and making those wacky movements.

Great to see the Digital Media Fund today receive another $4 million from the Victorian Government.

Victoria and Queensland are the two hotbeds of Australian games development, and government support in both states has proved crucial.

I have served on the DMF Game Development Assessment Committee as well as working as an external assessor judging the merits of funding applications, and the standard of game prototypes submitted is often impressive.

PK Daredevils and Darkenlight, two of the best games on display on the Games Australia stand at this year's Electronic Entertainment Expo, were both recipients of DMF funding. Tantalus Interactive's Anaka is another example of what local talent can achieve with some financial support.

Rapidly rising development costs and cheap work-for-hire studios in countries like China and India threaten the viability of Australia's game development industry, but our studios still have an outstanding reputation around the world for creating quality games on time and on budget.

The major challenge for Australian developers is to shift from individual work-for-hire projects to developing new intellectual property.

The risks when creating new and unique games are certainly greater, but the rewards are significant, as evidenced by IR Gurus with Heroes of the Pacific and Krome Studios with the award-winning Ty the Tasmanian Tiger series.

Few developers want to be stuck forever on work-for-hire contracts making movie or TV licensed product for overseas publishers, but the key is finding new sources of funding outside of the traditional publisher-driven model to achieve the financial independence necessary for creating new titles.

At the last Australian Games Developers Conference, many sessions explored how developers could find new sources of funding, including venture capital.

The Australian game industry is also continuing to lobby the Federal Government for tax concessions for local developers to match the intentives Hollywood is offered to make films Down Under.

Without secure new funding sources and the creation of strong new intellectual property, many talented local developers could struggle to survive.

Cynical gamers have been quick to pounce on Sony's embarrassing gaffes in its E3 press conference.

The giant enemy crab in Genji 2's "real historical battles" is my personal conference highlight, but other popular targets for ridicule include the PS3's high price point, Kaz Hirai's enthusiasm for a 10 year old racing game and the baffling Afrika simulation.

Check out hilarious videos like this, or shorter versions here and here. You can even download tunes like this to give Nintendo and Microsoft fans a chuckle while on the move.

Anti-Sony sentiment is also being spread by the Wii60 campaign, which encourages gamers to buy a Nintendo Wii and an Xbox 360 rather spending the same amount on a single PS3.

At least Sony devotees got some good news today, with revelations the cheaper PS3 that lacks HDMI output might still be able to play Blu-ray movies in the highest 1080p resolution.

It has been criticised for an uninspiring games catalogue and Hollywood support is dwindling, but PSP is a must-have accessory for frequent travelers.

Along with the forthcoming TalkMan language translator, Sony is developing multimedia travel guides for major cities in conjunction with Lonely Planet.

Launched in Spring, Planet PSP will initially be available in six editions covering Europe's most popular destinations: Amsterdam, Barcelona, London, Paris, Prague and Rome.

Designed with young tourists in mind, the guides cover over 250 city highlights like the latest restaurants, the best shops and the hottest clubs as well as famous tourist attractions.

Videos, audio walks, photographs, maps and pre-planned itineraries make full use of the PSP's multimedia capabilities.

Sony is also working on a GPS device for the handheld to add navigation applications and possibly location-based games, plus voice over IP capabilities to enable users to make voice or video calls.

By the end of the year, a traveller could use PSP to play games, listen to music, watch movies, surf the net, check email, access interactive maps, view city guides, chat to friends and family back home and as a foreign language translator.

Great to see PSP's price falling, too. Some Australian retailers have begun selling the console for $299.

Brian Reynolds is a gaming god that has created empires and entire civilizations. He's also let millions of computer players worldwide share in his omnipotent powers.

The veteran games designer might not be a household name, but millions of spouses around the world must secretly despise Reynolds. When players become addicted to his strategy games, which include Civilization, Alpha Centauri and Rise of Nations, they can be glued to the monitor for an age.

With Rise of Legends just released onto store shelves, Screen Play thought we would share a great interview conducted with Reynolds late last year as he put the finishing touches to his latest magnum opus.

What were your goals when starting work on Rise of Legends?
I didn't do a history game this time. Although the spiritual successor to Rise of Nations, I wanted to work on a fantasy game. Since your traditional cliche orcs, elves and goblins fantasy has been well covered in other material, the story I got excited about was one where the magic of fantasy meets the world of technology. Magic and technology collide with cataclysmic results. Unshackling ourselves from the chains of reality fits with one of our other goals, to let our artists really go wild and allow our programmers to create really amazing graphics technology. All the things that players love about Rise of Nations they'll find that same strategic depth in Rise of Legends but now packaged in an amazing graphics engine with amazing art and with an interesting and fresh storyline.

How liberating as a games designer was it to move to the fantasy setting?
It's a lot of fun, but there are advantages and disadvantages. With a history game, you have a lot of material easily accessible, you don't have to think it all up. And there is a certain charm to the authencitiy, thinking you're moving through history. But at the same time, when you do a fantasy game you can really let your imagination run wild. We think its going to be a really exciting and immersive experience for the players.

I thought Rise of Nation's genius was the balancing of its epic scope with surprising approachability and pace. Was that your focus?
Absolutely. There had been a lot of historical strategy games but they had either been turn-based or deal with a very specific time in history. It was the number one key goal that we were going to make a game that you could play multiplayer in an hour and yet go all the way through history. Nobody thought we could do it, but the fun thing was that you could really see the upgrades when you went from spear throwers to musketeers to machine gunners. It gives you more visual feedback and it worked in our favour.
For Rise of Legends, we've tried to again make a topic that's really big and epic and create huge visual differences from one nation and map to another. For our nations we wanted players to come into the game with some grounding, we didn't want everything to be completely alien, so we used elements like Arabian Nights and Da Vinci.

With games like Civilization II, Alpha Centauri and Rise of Nations under your belt, what do you think is the reason why strategy games are so universally popular around the world?
Strategy games tap into a kind of fun that people around the world like to have. I think people like to be challenged to think. And we try to pick big topics that are going to be interesting to people right around the world.

The artificial intelligence of opponents is crucial in strategy games. Obviously it's easy to make an opponent that can crush you every time, but how do you go about creating a more realistic, human-like opponent?
I come from a background where I programmed a lot of AI, including some in Rise of Nations. I find the key is doing a lot of iteration. You make some code that you think might work, then you have to play it, see what it does by watching it. Then you make some tweaks and it gets a bit better, then you tweak it some more. You see what it's weak at and improve that or replace it. In the end you have AI that does really neat stuff. I try to always think of what AI isn't doing that players normally do, like making a big army and release it into the world when its ready to attack rather than just using individual units to attack around the map.

Is your team's focus now equally on providing a enjoyable multiplayer experience as it is on delivering an entertaining single player game?
We're very much concentrated on both. We have a whole section of the team that's working on single player, including the Conquer the World strategic map, and then we have people working on the matchmaking multiplayer elements, which will be far beyond what we had in Rise of Nations. For this genre, both single and multiplayer are equally important.

How much play-testing goes into a title like Rise of Legends to get the balance right?
You wouldn't believe how much. We have a whole test department at Big Huge Games, it can be 10 people. Their job is to get the bugs out of the game. Then Microsoft provide a usability testing team where we can watch people to see if they can use our interface, whether they're liking the game, and that's very useful. Then there's another kind of testing that we call balance testing. Microsoft will go and get the winners of the World Cyber Games tournament and hire them as the best strategy players in the world as balance testers. They come in and really quickly give us a lot of feedback. After that its months and months of balancing work in the studio. It takes a lot of work because in this game the nations are radically asymmetrical - one side has tanks, the other side has dragons - they really are very different.

Is it difficult balancing act, wanting to include as many features as possible but not overwhelming the player and making the game a chore?
We always want to offer new features and we always have new ideas that we want to try. We'll try out a bunch and then just keep the ones that work the best. We might try 10 ideas and keep just two. Even just throwing out bad ideas and leaving mediocre ones will create clutter in the player's brain space. We want the really good features to stand out by being streamlined.

The industry is 30 years old now, are we starting to learn from the past rather than reinventing the wheel for every game?I think we do learn from past games. I've always felt I've learned from past games and each new game takes into account experiences I've had with the previous game. But in entertainment there's always the desire for something new and interesting. If we standardized everything it wouldn't be fun, it would be like an Excel spreadsheet. People come for new concepts, new visuals and new takes on old ideas. So you're always trying to be innovative.

What do you think makes good games design?
Presenting the player with a whole bunch of decisions. What is unique about our entertainment medium compared to movies and music and books is that our medium is interactive. We have a medium that lets players be in the story, so we need to give players good choices. That they are interesting and important, affecting the outcome of the story. In real-time strategy games, part of the fun is juggling seven balls in the air at the same time. There's different parts of the map where things are going on, you're working on the economy, technology, fighting, defending. I think that's what people like. You don't want to automate everything or it won't hold your attention, but it can't be too hard or people will just give up.

Do you think the best games are a single designer's vision or a melting pot of team ideas?
These days you kind of have to have a melting pot. We have 60 people working on Rise of Legends and you do need people who carry the vision of the game because otherwise it will be design by committee, and everything gets watered down so everyone can agree. You can't make a creative thing that way, you have to have someone who is the keeper of the vision. There's all sorts of fantasy games that we could have done, but ultimately we were doing this one because I think it's cool. There's nothing very objective about that. But at the same time one person can't think of all this stuff, it's people working together stimulating each other and brainstorming creative ideas.

Strategy games are used in some Australian classrooms, do you think they can be a valuable educational tool?
I think they can. But I think games unless they are specifically marketed as educational software are more designed to stretch people's imagination than they are to teach a series of facts because we are in the entertainment business. We're more likely to play to people's preconceptions of something than to accurately teach them something because that's not necessarily entertaining. Hopefully after playing historical games people will get inspired to go and learn more, but ultimately we want to entertain.

As a designer, how important is it to you to include editing tools to let players design their own missions?
I've always thought it was really important. We have a tool that you can use to create not only levels but scenarios and quests. It's really easy to put new scenarios together. I know its controversial, some people feel like it's their creation and a piece of art that has moral integrity that players shouldn't be messed with, but I've always tried to make an open architecture so people can change the rules of the game and add art or create levels and turn it into a whole new game experience.

Some people have questioned the future of the PC as a gaming platform with the next-gen consoles on their way. What are your thoughts?
I've seen the cycle happen over and over again. The PC platform is more stable over time, it doesn't grow as fast, but the PC market keeps on plugging along. There are certain types of games that are better suited to the PC, and real-time strategy is one of them because it has the higher resolution for distinguishing units and you have the mouse control interface for individually selecting all these units.

Do you think you could do a crossover product in future, like a massively multiplayer strategy game with human troops?
Yes, absolutely. A game where you had one of the players on a PC and another on a console and they had different roles in the game, it's a very exciting kind of concept. But give us a few years!

Sony's interactive quiz show is dominating the latest Australian game sales charts.

The all formats chart for the week ending May 14 from market research group GfK has Buzz: The Big Quiz occupying the top two slots.

Despite the focus on next-generation consoles at the recent E3 expo, PlayStation 2 titles occupy six out of the top 10 titles.

The new SingStar Rocks is also selling well, highlighting the current popularity of peripheral-based gaming. It is good news for Activision, which is preparing to release Guitar Hero on June 15 for $129, complete with novelty guitar controller.

The Sims franchise continues its astonishing popularity, occupying four positions in the PC Top 10, including the top two slots.

Epic role playing adventure Oblivion continues to be the most popular game for Xbox 360, while World Cup mania is helping to boost sales of the latest FIFA for Electronic Arts.

The father of PlayStation, Ken Kutaragi, considers his new baby "probably too cheap", but PS3's $1000 price tag has shocked many gamers.

Even the less desirable $829 PS3, which comes with a smaller 20GB hard drive and lacks the HDMI output, WiFi support and memory card inputs found in the 60GB "premium version", is more expensive than any other games console ever released in Australia.

Early adopters are used to getting slugged, routinely paying a very high price to enjoy the latest gaming technology.

Today Screen Play delves into the archives to reveal the price of every console released in Australia going right back to the 3DO's ill-fated launch in 1994.

3DOPrice: $745Released: 1994Launch Title Highlights: Crash n Burn, Road Rash, FIFA International Soccer. Quote from the View from the Hill archives: "Whether the 3DO is a success or not, the one lesson learned is that the era of the computer as appliance is upon us. From one machine the family can play super-realistic games, run educational material, look at photographs, play music through the stereo and in the future maybe even interact with a movie rented from a local video store."

Sega SaturnPrice: $799 (with Virtua Fighter)Released: July 1995Launch Title Highlights: Virtua Fighter, Daytona USA. Quote from the View from the Hill archives: "Head to head against the Sony PlayStation, the Saturn comes second in technology. But what Sega have to their advantage is their stock of killer arcade games."

Sony PlayStationPrice: $699Released: November 1995Launch Title Highlights: Ridge Racer, Destruction Derby, Toshinden. Quote from the View from the Hill archives: "The exceptional standard of the first games and the wealth of leading designers that Sony have signed to produce titles for the PlayStation should ensure the console is a spectacular success."

Nintendo 64Price: $399Released: February 1997Launch Title Highlights: Super Mario 64, Pilotwings 64, Wave Race 64. Quote from the View from the Hill archives: "If the Nintendo 64 does fail, it will probably be that it couldn't compete with the vast libraries of titles on other platforms, and that it was released much too late."

Sega DreamcastPrice: $499Released: October 1999Launch Title Highlights: Sega Rally 2, Virtua Fighter 3, Powerstone. Quote from the View from the Hill archives: "Sega's next machine might be their last shot. But fortunately, it looks every bit a winner."

Sony PlayStation 2Price: $749Released: November 2000Launch Title Highlights: Tekken Tag Tournament, Timesplitters, SSX.Quote from the View from the Hill archives: "Sony envisage a future in which PS2 owners connect to an online network via broadband connection that enables them to surf the Net as well as download games, movies and music. It is expected developers will release episodic games, with perhaps a new level every week or month. The vision is at least a year away, possibly much longer."

Microsoft XboxPrice: $649Released: March 2002Launch Title Highlights: Halo, Project Gotham Racing, Oddworld: Munch's Oddysee, Jet Set Radio Future. Quote from the View from the Hill archives: "Microsoft must acknowledge that Sony and Nintendo are going to be very tough competitors, and that their superior technology alone will not necessarily win them the next-generation console war. The main questions hanging over the Xbox will be whether Microsoft can successfully shake their geeky image and attract the "cool" mainstream market like Sony has done, and whether it can avoid Xbox simply being a dumping place for ports of PC games."

Nintendo GameCubePrice: $329Released: May 2002Launch Title Highlights: Luigi's Mansion, Star Wars Rogue Leader. Quote from the View from the Hill archives: "A must-buy for dedicated gamers and anyone who appreciates Nintendo titles. But GameCube is unlikely to ever offer the PS2's wide library and doesn't play DVDs, so in the eyes of the mainstream it seems destined to battle it out with Xbox for second place."

Microsoft Xbox 360 Price: $649 (or $499 for Core system) Released: March 2006Launch Title Highlights: Project Gotham Racing 3, Perfect Dark Zero, Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter, Call of Duty 2. Quote from the View from the Hill archives: "Early adopters will have a lot of fun with 360, but there are also compelling reasons to wait: to assess the competition, for games to improve, and for console and high-definition display prices to fall."

The inevitable (and understandable) outrage over a game based on the Columbine massacre again highlights that it will take a long time before the interactive games industry will be able to tackle the same topics as Hollywood without impunity.

Like another controversial game, JFK Reloaded, there will be no shortage of people who will think the subject matter unsuitable for a game.

But the creator of the "Super Columbine Massacre" role-playing game is clearly an intelligent lad who wants to stir debate on the topic of school violence by using the interactive realm. He argues the game, which has been available on the net for a year, is not a game for entertainment, but rather education, using a common tool of artists around the world - parody.

The world of art has always explored ideas and challenged, confronted and subverted culture. Game creators should be able to do the same.

Games are increasingly used around the world for serious applications other than entertainment. But the stigma that trivialises them as mere toys (usually from an older generation with no game-playing experience) is going to be difficult to shake.

Although only a brief trailer was shown at E3, Halo 3 still managed to be one of the stars of the show.

The Halo 3 trailer was the most popular item downloaded from the Xbox Live Marketplace during E3, and can also be viewed at developer Bungie's web site.

Screen Play got the rare chance to sit down with some of the Bungie team at the show to try to prise out further details about the highly anticipated game, which will be the final instalment in Master Chief's trilogy.

Halo 3 is to have an even stronger narrative focus than its predecessor and a darker mood, according to CJ Cowan, Bungie's director of cinematics. "It's epic, but has a darker feel. A little bit moodier, there's some tension going on, and some consequences for our characters."

Bungie will reveal little about the plot, but CJ says the "star of the trailer, a huge forerunner artefact buried under the African desert," plays a pivotal role.

The trailer, which shows the ruins of New Mombassa in South Africa, is set about a third of the way through the game and features real in-game footage.

"There's quite a few significant events that have happened since the end of Halo 2 and what you're seeing here," says CJ. "If you look closely, you'll see scars on the Master Chief's chest, scratches and gouges, the events actually had some consequences for our characters."

"There were some rumblings that it was a cliffhanger ending," jokes CJ in reference to Halo 2's heavily criticised conclusion, "but it was all set up for this, the final game in Master Chief's story, the end of our trilogy."

The pressure of expectation on the 70-man team must be a massive burden to carry, but their passion for the game is obvious.

"We're kinda used to it. We've got thick skin. The whole team is working really hard. We can't wait to get back up there and put E3 behind us and start working on the game again."

"We're really excited to be able to say the worlds Halo and 3 in the same sentence now without getting beat up. We're very excited to be able to share the work that we've been producing and tell you a little about what's ahead."

Cortana, who has been Master Chief's partner through the first two games, is set to play a more prominent role in Halo 3.

"The trailer will give you a few subtle clues as to what's going on with her story and her state of mind as she deals with the Gravenmind and the Flood back on the other side of the galaxy," says CJ.

"We spent a long time discussing where we're going fictionally with this game. When I say discussing, I mean arguing. We're all really passionate about the Master Chief's story, Cortana, the Arbiter, we're really excited about what we've set up and where we're taking it. It's a great ending. We're terribly excited about this fiction and can't wait to share it with you guys."

Marcus Lehto, Bungie's art director, describes the trailer's setting as "one of the most epic views ever created for the Halo franchise" and adds that all the items you can see are "real geometry as far as you can see. This isn't just a map painting".

Marcus says the game also has real atmospheric effects like rain and pollution.

Halo 3's new lighting system takes the primary light from sources like the sun as well as reflected light from other reflective surfaces to produce incredibly sophisticated character illumination. "Self-shadowing" techniques offer even more realism.

"It's cutting edge stuff, not currently used in the gaming industry at the moment," says Marcus.

You can even see the world reflected in the chief's visor, while a reworked animation system will provide further realism.

"It just scratches the surface of what we're doing," says Marcus of the trailer. "The team is hard at work on all the rest of the characters, vehicles and weapons that you guys all know and love. It's only going to look better than this when we finally ship."

Marcus stresses that the high-resolution graphics will not compromise the action. "Our ultimate objective is to create massive, epic battles. We're still putting detailed characters in there to really push the hardware, but which will still allow us to create the epic gameplay that you have come to expect."

Over 12 million copies of the Halo series have sold worldwide. Halo 3 is expected to be released sometime in 2007 for Xbox 360.

Immersion Corp, the company in a patent infringement dispute with Sony over controller vibration technology, has cast further doubt upon Sony's reason for removing the rumble feature from its forthcoming PlayStation 3 controller.

At E3 last week, Sony claimed it had been forced to remove rumble from its pad (formerly known as Dual Shock) because it interfered with its new tilt-sensors.

However, Immersion Corp CEO Vic Viegas has told GameDaily Biz that any technical hurdles could be overcome.

"We already have three ways we know how to solve the problem, but we're not willing to work with them until we've resolved this long, simmering legal battle," Mr Viegas said.

Nintendo's Wii motion-sensor controllers include rumble technology, and many developers at E3 were surprised to hear rumble had been removed from the PS3 pad.

Many commentators believe the feature was removed because of the lengthy and potentially expensive legal battle Sony is waging against Immersion.

Microsoft's Peter Moore also expressed his surprise last week that Sony had removed rumble, which has become a standard feature in modern joypads. "I cannot believe they would do that," he said.

"I love force feedback when playing games. I would have settled that lawsuit with Immersion rather than take out force feedback which I believe is an integral part of the sensory element of gaming."

After yesterday's name calling and "mine's bigger than yours" bluster, let's get back to what really matters - the actual games.

We all know interactive games can provide incredible entertainment, unique experiences and trigger all kinds of emotions.

To celebrate our favourite hobby (and show the cynics the diversity of experiences that gaming can offer) Screen Play has been contemplating a newspaper feature along the lines of "The Top 50 Gaming Moments".

Read our suggestions for magical moments and have your say by nominating your most memorable gaming experiences that are seared into your mind forever.

Some nominations for gaming's most memorable moments:

- The death of Aerith in Final Fantasy VII.

- Your first "woohoo" in Mario 64.

- The first time you played Zelda's Lullaby in Ocarina of Time.

- Finally attaining Level 60 in World of Warcraft.

- The final haunting moments of Ico.

- Psycho Mantis reading your mind in Metal Gear Solid.

- Losing yourself "in the zone" rocking to Guitar Hero.

- The elation of buying ET for Atari 2600, then the horrific realisation that you had wasted a year's pocket money on the worst game of all time.

- The first time you slay a titan in Shadow of the Colossus.

- The first glimpse of a licker in Resident Evil.

- Mumbling "is that it?" as the Halo 2 credits roll.

- The first time you use in gravity gun in Half-Life 2.

- Realising that the sun has come up after an all night Civilization session.

- Performing your first Ridge Racer powerslide.

- Rapping with Chop Chop Master Onion and PaRappa.

- Base jumping in San Andreas.

- Bouncing a shot off the wall to hit your mate's tank in Combat.

- Programming your very first Commodore 64 game.

- Scoring an impossible goal in the final seconds of a tight Pro Evolution game.

Screen Play rates the best games and hardware at this year's Electronic Entertainment Expo.

1. Nintendo Wii. It might still turn out to be a short-lived gimmick, but the Wii's motion sensor controllers make even veteran gamers feel like they're playing for the very first time.

2. Spore. Screen Play's favourite game of the show for the second year running. Hugely creative and ambitious, Will Wright's magnum opus lets you sculpt your own unique universe.

3. Assassin's Creed. From the makers of Sands of Time, this was the most exciting new game of E3. Players have intoxicating freedom to explore.

4. The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess. Has the potential to be Nintendo's finest masterpiece yet. Motion-sensor controls allow new puzzles and increase immersion in a gorgeous fairytale world.

5. PlayStation 3. Games were in a more advanced and impressive state than Microsoft's 360 range this time last year, indicating Sony is ready for its November launch and that their boasts of PS3's processing power were not exaggerated.

7. Crysis. More guns were fired at E3 than a NRA reunion, but among dozens of high-quality shooters (particularly Gears of War), Crysis was the standout. The fully destructible environments add terrific tactical depth and realism.

8. Live Anywhere. The prospect of playing Live Arcade games at work or on the move could cut the business world's productivity to shreds.

9. SingStar. Wannabe Australian Idols will soon be able to croon to over 300 tracks, downloading their favourite tunes and avoiding the duds via PS3's online service.

10. Viva Pinata. Microsoft is finally realising that it needs to attract new players to Xbox beyond their hardcore audience. Viva might borrow brazenly from Animal Crossing, but its charm and wide appeal is obvious.

Time to unleash your creativity and show the world's game developers how it should be done!

With all the talk about the gaming industry's lack of creativity and innovation, Screen Play wants to hear your ideas for compelling new games.

We've even got the ball rolling with a few ideas of our own...

Game Show
Kick, punch and bite your way through the huddled masses at the Electronic Entertainment Expo in order to get your first glimpse of the Nintendo Wii and the chance to play Super Mario Galaxy for 3.2 seconds before being kicked off by a Hawaiian security guard who weighs more than a sumo wrestler.

Tokyo Subway Challenge
A Lemmings-meets-Tetris puzzler where you have to rearrange Japanese commuters inside subway cars so that the maximum occupancy is reached before the train pulls away from the station. A bonus sub-game involves trying to work out how much Japanese Yen to shove in the ticket machine to get from Shibuya to Akihabara.

Toy Boy
You're a toy tycoon, competing against rival toymakers. You design your own playthings such as remote control vehicles, robotic pets, action figures and dolls. Once you've got a toy that kids will love, you can choose devious marketing campaigns to increase sales and even make your own spin-off TV cartoons.

Bogeyman
Control the world's ultimate villain - the bogeyman! Terrorise the neighbourhood by scaring kids, peeking through windows, sneaking around houses at night, fiddling with door handles, setting traps and stomping over rooftops.

GamesIndustry.biz has reported the price of an Xbox 360 and a HD-DVD add-on drive for watching high-definition movies will be cheaper than a PlayStation 3.

PS3's Australian price starts from a whopping $829, but Sony is hoping the inclusion of a Blu-ray drive will prove irresistible to consumers desperate for content to show off their new LCD and plasma displays.

Blu-ray offers movies in dazzling high-definition and can store over five times more data than the standard DVD drive found in Microsoft's Xbox 360.

At last week's E3 press conference, Microsoft confirmed its HD-DVD Player will be available before the end of the year. However, the device will only play movies, not game discs.

The Xbox 360 currently retails from $499. If GamesIndustry.biz's sources are correct, Microsoft's HD-DVD drive would have to cost less than $325 - far cheaper than a standalone HD-DVD player.

The success or failure of the Blu-ray format could have a significant bearing on PS3's fortunes.

Many PlayStation 2 early adopters purchased the console primarily as a cheap DVD player, and even at $829, PS3 could also represent a cheap Blu-ray movie device.

Sony says five out of the six major Hollywood studios representing 80 percent of the movie market are supporting Blu-ray.

The Entertainment Software Association has unveiled new research showing the astonishing popularity of interactive games and countering negative stereotypes that suggest gaming is a juvenile and anti-social past-time.

The US study mirrors the findings of last year's GamePlay Australia report by Bond University, which found over 70 per cent of Australian households had a device for playing computer or console games.

The ESA study found the average age of American game players was 33 years, with 44 per cent of players over 18 and 25 per cent over 50. Over 60 per cent were male, but contrary to stereotypes, more women over 18 play games than boys under 17.

The statistics highlight that gaming is not a hobby that people grow out of. Adults surveyed had been playing games for an average of 12 years.

Action games were the most popular, followed by sports, racing, family entertainment, shooters and role playing.

Despite the media focus on controversial "adult" titles like Grand Theft Auto, over 50 per cent of all games sold in 2005 were rated "E for Everyone". Only 15 per cent were rated "Mature".

The survey revealed most parents take a very active role in choosing titles for their children, another similarity to the GamePlay Australia study, which found over 88 per cent of Australians want a R classification and more than 60 per cent of parents monitor their children's game playing "a lot".

In the US study, 89 per cent of parents are present at the time games are purchased or rented, while 61 per cent believe games are a positive part of their children's lives. 35 per cent of American parents play computer and video games, and 47 per cent of these are women.

Parents said they played with their children because they were asked, because it was fun for the whole family, it was a good opportunity to socialise with their kids, and to monitor game content.

Contrary to another negative stereotype, gamers devote more than triple the amount of time spent playing games each week to exercising or playing sports, volunteering in the community, religious activities, creative endeavours, cultural activities and reading.

Gaming is also a social activity. Over 50 per cent of gamers play alongside others at least one hour per week, while a quarter play online at least one hour per week.

Online gaming is rapidly growing in popularity, with 44 per cent of frequent gamers playing online, up from 19 per cent five years ago.

A surprising 42 per cent of online game players are female, with social puzzle, card and trivia games representing over 50 per cent of all games played online.

Now the fun and games of the annual E3 circus is over for another year, the event's limitations are worth highlighting.

Imagine if the world's film reviewers were sent to Cannes and made rash assessments on upcoming flicks based on five-minute trailers they couldn't hear and barely see from a packed show floor.

It's absurd, but these are the same conditions that most correspondents, retail buyers and industry analysts endure at E3.

The size and scope of E3 is extraordinary.

E3 2006 featured over 400 exhibitors from 90 countries showing 5000 products on over 5800 flat screen TVs in a space that organisers describe as "equivalent to 2700 city blocks".

With the interactive industry's annual revenue now over $40 million, E3's importance and profile is growing every year.

The official e3insider.com web site received over 1.5 million visitors during the three-day show, while other sites like IGN and Gamespot have massive teams on the show floor regurgitating every announcement and posting impressions of hundreds of games.

But just who is E3 really for?

Many cynics suggest the week-long event is simply an opportunity for gaming writers, retailers and developers to guzzle free booze, ogle at booth babes, gossip about the industry and nab as many gaudy t-shirts as possible.

The problem is that being the biggest event in the gaming calendar, E3 crams too many diverse groups under the one roof.

Nintendo's Wii stand this year highlighted the event's limitations. Nintendo had 27 playable games displayed on about 100 Wii machines inside an enclosed area. Queues to enter were regularly over five hours long, and once inside, attendees had to queue again at each pod for an average of an hour to play a five or ten minute demo of each game.

When any important journalist, retail buyer or games developer can by-pass the line and gain entry, the reality is that most of the people who can afford to spend hours in the queue probably have no legitimate business being at the event at all.

Even the press conferences, which are limited to just a few thousand exclusive tickets, tend to run the full gamut from hard facts about sales figures and highly technical hardware and software demonstrations to silly stunts for photo opportunities and gushing announcements engineered to illicit rapturous ovations from fan-boys and hired clappers.

The sad part is that the enormous quantity of games and information at E3 encourages snap-second judgement calls based on ridiculously slim material. It must really pain the developers of a game, who routinely spend over two years of their life and significant overtime to craft their unique art, to have it instantly dismissed often without even being played.

Fortunately, even with my jetlag-induced cynicism, E3 can still offer rare opportunities, such as sitting down with Will Wright to explore the dazzling universe of Spore, chatting to Peter Molyneux about the future of online worlds or witnessing Shigeru Miyamoto's infectious enthusiasm for games with cross-generation appeal.

Note: I used the term correspondents rather than journalists because the vast majority of media at E3 are little more than fanatical cheerleaders for the gaming industry, embarrassingly hooting and hollering when anything that takes their fancy is revealed at the enormous press conferences. But that's another topic altogether...

Can the new kid on the block steal the show? Screen Play rates Microsoft's performance at E3...

Press Conference - 9/10

Microsoft was always going to find E3 2006 difficult, with attention focused on the shiny new toys - PS3 and Wii. But their press conference contained plenty of news, a far-sighted vision for the future of Xbox Live and a solid selection of games, kicked off with Epic's ever-enthusiastic Cliffy B. Bill Gates should be kept as far away from Xbox as possible, but his presence underscored the importance of gaming to Microsoft's business and guaranteed headlines.

Games - 8/10

Xbox 360's early adopters would be more than happy with the line-up of games at E3. Gears of War, Crackdown, Mass Effect and Gears of War impressed, while Viva Pinata represents a vital pitch to a wider market, even if it shamelessly copies Animal Crossing. And even the briefest glimpse of Halo 3 produces oceans of saliva. Microsoft's weakness remains its lack of software innovation: it is yet to prove an equal to Sony in developing titles that can attract new consumers to Xbox beyond its traditional hardcore audience.

Third-party support - 7/10

Microsoft hasn't been able to attract many big name exclusives to 360 from third-party developers, but convincing Rockstar to launch Grand Theft Auto IV simultaneously on 360 and PS3 is a major coup. Lost Planet is one of the few top-shelf exclusives, but the likes of Indiana Jones, Brothers in Arms, The Darkness, Prey, Pro Evo, Rainbow Six Vegas, Army of Two, Alone in the Dark and the usual EA Sports line-up should keep fans happy.

Show Stand - 9/10

Loads of playable games reiterated Microsoft's message that the next-generation has already arrived, and the queues for Gears of War confirmed Microsoft's confidence in the game as its biggest for 2006. The Halo 3 trailer was also a guaranteed show-stopper.

Excitement Level - 7/10

Microsoft was never going to be able to match the PS3 and Wii hype, but its range of "second-gen" next-gen titles, new Arcade offerings and upcoming new Live functionality gave Xbox devotees plenty to boast about.

Overall - 8/10

Against the odds, this was Microsoft's E3. The performance of Bill's behemoth will surely help achieve its goal of 10 million 360s sold before PS3 and Wii even hit the market. But Microsoft still needs more innovative exclusives if it is going to wrestle market dominance from Sony.

Nintendo's revolutionary Wii was the biggest talking point of E3. Screen Play rates the house of Mario's performance at the show...

Press Conference - 9/10

A simple message clearly articulated. Wii equals fun. Like Miyamoto's infectious passion and enthusiasm, once you see players enjoying Wii, you just want to have a play. The only disappointment was the obvious lack of third-party support for the platform.

Games - 8/10

An excellent range of big-name franchises and promising new titles. Mario, Zelda and Wii Sports were the highlights. But the important question of whether the controller can offer significant depth beyond its novelty appeal requires much more playtime than what is offered at E3.

Third-party support - 3/10

Remains Nintendo's Achilles heal. Red Steel and Super Monkey Ball were the best of a very small line-up from third-party developers. Too few publishers seem willing to make an expensive bet on Wii's success just yet. It's much safer (and easier) to make a PS3/360/PC title.

Show Stand - 7/10

Funky pop tunes replaced the usual twee Mushroom Kingdom ditties, signalling Nintendo's intent to capture the mass-market. But keeping the Wii hidden behind a massive enclosure (and a five-hour wait to get in) was a big mistake. Key media, retailers and developers can jump the queue, so who was lining up anyway?

Excitement Level - 10/10

Wii was the first topic of conversation for every E3 attendee. Getting your hands on a Wii-mote earned significant kudos and bragging points. If Nintendo can create as much anticipation when Wii hits the stores in November, the Japanese giant could once again be a major player on TVs around the world.

Overall - 7/10

Nintendo could have comfortably won the show had it been able to generate more Wii support from third-party developers. Fortunately, the E3 fervour must have convinced many publishers to consider the platform seriously. The other challenge of proving that Wii is more than a gimmick remains a huge task.

The generation gap can be relied upon to produce criticism based upon ignorance or the shock of the new.

Anything outside a person's experience is fair game, which is why games are so often labelled as harmful.

The music of Elvis and The Beatles were foreign to parents of the 1950s and 60s, so many called the music dangerous. Comics, movies, television and even certain types of books have suffered similar condemnation in the past.

Perhaps some of you can remember that before Sesame Street, the idea that kids could learn anything from television was absurd. Today it is computer games that are in the firing line.

My hope is that the idea that computer games are corrupting an entire generation of kids will soon be considered as absurd as the once commonly held notion that a gyrating rock star would create a generation of depraved sexual deviants.

We all want our children to enjoy a balanced range of activities. No one will argue that children and teenagers shouldn't read books, play sport and indulge in all manner of indoor and outdoor activities.

No one should spend countless hours glued to a television screen, a computer monitor or a handheld game.

But society has finally stopped using television as a scapegoat for social ills. It is time electronic games are recognised as another form of entertainment that has the potential to equally aid a child's development as to harm.

Here's the good news: games can improve coordination, problem-solving skills and fuel the imagination.

Gaming doesn't have to be a solo activity: playing with friends can encourage communication, co-operation and teamwork. Internet play can result in new long-distance relationships, and even let people explore role playing and think about their own identity.

Games can let people indulge in risk taking, carry out fantasies, play God, or learn to empathise with others from experiencing what its like to be put in their shoes.

Contrary to the view that games are an anti-social activity, most frequent gamers play with friends.

This isn't just my personal view. Many academics are now studying what children can learn from gaming.

We all need to protect our children from excessive violence, but to completely deny children one of the most powerful and exciting entertainment and educational mediums is not the answer.

Be guided by the ratings labels when shopping for games, and most importantly, play with your kids.

PlayStation 3 made its public debut at this year's Electronic Entertainment Expo. Screen Play rates Sony's performance...

Press Conference - 4/10

Confident and bullish as ever, Sony expected its motion sensor controller to be a trump card. But tall poppy syndrome struck the market leader hard: critics and gamers alike toasted Sony for copying Nintendo, removing rumble support (and misleading journalists why it was removed) plus neglecting to mention that the cheaper PS3 bundle was missing HDMI and Wifi support. No console manufacturer has ever had a more hostile reaction to a press conference.

Games - 7/10

Sony's first party line-up was much more advanced than 360's at the same time last year, and should offer something for everyone. Warhawk was the surprise hit thanks to its responsive tilt-sensor control, and there was a pleasing mix of both innovative and familiar new games as well as sequels. Letting punters play a high-res Gran Turismo prototype that will never be released was strange, though.

Third-party support - 8/10

Sony's market strength ensures it receives the most comprehensive support from third party developers. Ubisoft's PS3 exclusive Assasin's Creed was the shining light, and Metal Gear Solid 4 is another guaranteed smash. But Rockstar's decision to release Grand Theft Auto IV on 360 as well as PS3 gave Microsoft a real boost.

Show Stand - 8/10

Sony's stand was always packed but gamers never had to wait too long to get their hands on the new PS3 controller. As usual, Sony also won points for the most stylish displays, particularly in their funky PSP area.

Excitement Level - 8/10

Gamers might bemoan the high price, but few wouldn't want to have Sony's new black beauty underneath their TV tomorrow. And comparing most PS3 games against those of the Xbox 360 at E3 2005, Sony's claims of superior processing power might not have been exaggerated.

Overall - 7/10

Hardly the disaster that some are claiming, but not the dominant E3 performance that Sony usually produces. What should have been a PR dream turned into a nightmare.

But Mr Moore dismissed the possibility of a motion-sensor controller like PS3 or Wii for the Xbox 360, saying consumers had already rejected the concept when Microsoft released its Freestyle controller for PC a decade ago.

The global interactive entertainment industry now rakes in over $40 billion a year - more than the Hollywood box office.

In Australia, over 70 percent of households have a device for playing computer or console games and over a billion dollars will be spent this year on gaming software and hardware.

Games are a unique art form captivating millions of players around the world, but is gaming really a mass-market entertainment force when so many of the world's population have never even picked up a joypad?

At this year's Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3), which opened today in Los Angeles, companies like Sony, Nintendo and Microsoft are trying to lure new players to try electronic games for the first time.

The tools used to try to widen videogaming's audience include motion sensor controllers waved through the air like magic wands, online functionality that lets you see and chat to faraway friends while playing, dazzling high-definition graphics and flexible multimedia functionality for downloading movies and music as well as games.

The average age of game players is rising, with the first generation of game players now well into their 30s and even 40s, but games are still dismissed by many cynics as juvenile pap.

Despite its incredible revenue, the gaming industry has a long way to go before convincing the world of its cultural value and garnering the same kind of respect that the film and music industries enjoy.

In his first-ever appearance at an E3 event, Microsoft's Bill Gates announced the software giant will bring its acclaimed Xbox Live online service to Windows and mobile phones.

By integrating Live functionality into the upcoming Windows Vista operating system and onto the Windows Mobile platform, gamers will be able to page friends and even play games against mates using different devices.

Microsoft also revealed the two big guns of Halo 3 and Grand Theft Auto IV would be coming to Xbox 360 in 2007.

Microsoft expects to have sold 10 million Xbox 360 consoles before Sony launches PlayStation 3 in November, and more than 150 games will be available for the platform by Christmas.

The 360 is enjoying the fastest take-up in console history - faster than PSone, PS2 and another cultural icon, the iPod.

Microsoft's Peter Moore described the line-up as "the second gen of next-gen games".

Forza Motorsport 2 will also be released before Christmas, and features 300 highly customisable cars. It will be joined by a new wireless force feedback steering wheel.

Other new 360 peripherals on their way before Christmas include the Xbox Live Vision Camera, a wireless headset and a HD DVD player for watching high-definition movies.

Microsoft is pleased with the success of its Xbox Live Arcade online service, which offers both classic arcade games and new titles from independent studios.

Retro classics like Pac-Man, Frogger, Galaga and Defender will be released from companies like Namco, Midway and Konami, while popular and stylish PSP puzzler Lumines is also coming to the Live Arcade platform, complete with music from Warner Music artists like Madonna.

To coincide with January's release of Windows Vista, Microsoft will launch a new campaign to promote the PC as a gaming platform. Upcoming titles Shadowrun and Alan Wake will be launched simultaneously on Windows and 360.

The new Live Anywhere functionality will let gamers accumulate Xbox Live achievement points and view GamerCard statistics on Windows PCs and mobile phones.

Nintendo pleased a crowd of 3000 gaming journalists, developers and rowdy fans with new Zelda, Mario and Metroid games at its pre-E3 press conference today.

The company declined to name a price and date for its innovative Wii console (formerly known by the codename Revolution) but promised American gamers would be playing by Christmas. An Australian release date is still uncertain.

Buoyed by the success of its touch-screened DS console, which has sold over 16 million worldwide, Nintendo believes it can attract new and jaded players as well as providing new experiences for its core base of fanatical fans with Wii's motion sensor controller.

Acclaimed games designer Shigeru Miyamoto enthusiastically kicked off proceedings by conducting a virtual orchestra with the Wii controller.

Nintendo also demonstrated the Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, which will now be simultaneously launched in two separate versions for GameCube and Wii before Christmas.

The Wii version of Twilight Princess lets players control hero Link with the "nunchuck" analog stick while swinging swords, firing arrows, hurling boomerangs and launching grappling hooks with the "Wii-mote".

Nintendo confirmed the Wii controller has a built-in speaker which can be used by developers to offer sound independent of the TV speakers, providing aural depth and unique feedback to players.

Third-party support for Wii lacks the depth of PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, but 27 Wii titles will be playable on the show floor at the E3 expo, which starts tomorrow.

Nintendo President Satoru Iwata says Nintendo's unusual Brain Training DS game has sold over 5 million copies in Japan and has been "tried by millions of people who have never played games before".

Iwata says Nintendo will continue the DS console's "disruptive" strategy with Wii, focusing on providing unique experiences rather than concentrating on next-generation graphics. "We believe this approach can appeal to a much wider audience and also excite core gamers."

Iwata also revealed Wii will be "the console that never sleeps", using an online Internet connection to download new content even when it is turned off.

In a powerful opening salvo on the eve of this week's E3 expo, Sony has revealed PlayStation 3's controller has motion sensor technology built into an otherwise traditional Dual Shock joypad.

Sony will launch PlayStation 3 in Australia on November 17 for an expected retail price of $829 for a machine equipped with a 20GB hard drive, and $999 for a 60GB version.

The PS3's wireless motion sensor controller was demonstrated with upcoming flight combat simulator Warhawk, with the player tilting the controller in mid-air to mimic the movement of the plane's wings.

The controller can register 360 degree movement and does not require an external sensor.

It represents a cruel blow to industry veteran Nintendo, which was counting on its Wii motion sensor controller to offer a crucial point of difference in the next-generation console battle.

Nintendo believes the modern controller has become too complex and intimidating for newcomers, but Sony's approach could offer the same accessibility of the radical "Wii-mote" without sacrificing the many buttons and analog sticks that dedicated gamers have come to rely upon.

However, the technology used in the two devices is very different, with the Wii's extra ability of knowing where the controller is being pointed offering extra applications.

Playable versions of many PS3 games will be available on the show floor at the E3 expo, which starts Wednesday.

UPDATE: Local pricing is now confirmed. The cheaper 20GB PS3 will lack the HDMI output, WiFi support and inputs for Memory Stick, SD and Compact Flash memory cards found in the "premium" version with the 60GB hard drive. Start saving...

With over a billion dollars expected to be spent on games and consoles in Australia this year, interactive entertainment has moved from the bedroom hobby of a handful of pimply faced geeks to a mainstream entertainment force rivaling music and film.

Screen Play will provide lively and entertaining coverage of the burgeoning games industry, starting with exclusive coverage of the massive Electronic Entertainment Expo all the way from Los Angeles.

This will also be a place where you can debate and share your thoughts on this exciting new medium. And hopefully, have plenty of fun.

Games are a powerful art form captivating the world. They have the potential to stir people's emotions and provide unique experiences exclusive to the interactive realm.

To understand why games mean so much to so many people, sceptics need to consider the kinds of experiences only available in these new digital playgrounds.

Those who still equate games with Pac-Man and Space Invaders need to watch as disabled people break free of their shackles, with total freedom to express themselves and forge identity in the remarkable online world of Second Life.

Other cynics should try the extraordinary freeform interactive storytelling of Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas, where even their character's appearance is influenced by their actions while freely exploring massive virtual cities.

Even traditional games like Call of Duty or Gran Turismo give players unique experiences: what it feels like to experience war, or the exhilaration of a perfectly executed lap driving a BMW at Nurburgring.